Two questions ..

[ForeverBroke_]

Eep, sorry - another post.

1) Are you still riding in exercise sheets?! Only ask as someone just rode up my lane in one - and its very VERY slightly spitting. Ah well

2) I'm having a bit of a schooling crisis atm. I'll try to word it quickly/ without rambling etc. Basically, it takes about 20minutes for us to stop girafffing. He has a nice bend when he's supple having done various school movements / lateral work etc but he's still not round very consistently. It does come - but its very hard and doesn't last very long! I sort of feel as if I should've grasped it by now having owned him a year. I understand its all about his back end - and when he's warmed up and really using himself I think my main issue is i let him run through my hand - even though I half-halt..

Any help would be great

I'm not too obsessed with it , its just I've got a championship next weekend and would love for him to be even a LITTLE bit more rounder. Thankee!

 

[TS_]

Question 1 - No it's summer

Question 2 - What bit do you ride him in? I know you may not want to change it before a championship but it may be worth having a play around with bits (if you haven't done so already.) I've had Suni for over a year and a halpf now and until the end of last month could not get her to cosistently round without taking ages and a bit of a fight. As a random thought I tried a straight bar, instead of the normal single jointed snaffle she normally has. She now goes on the bit immediatly and is getting pretty consistant. So I would definatly consider having a play around with bits as it is, now, as if I have a new horse!

 

[mattilda]

Will he work long and low? I tend to do around 20 minutes that way in walk, trot and canter with loads of transitions. Then I pick him up slowly until he is working "properly". If he goes against your hand and giraffes work on a circle with lots of changes of rein pushing through from behind into a steady but not blocking contact. Keep your hands low and wide.
It is hard work but you will get there. My old tb was 16 before we got the hang of things and then only because we found an amzing trainer. She half killed me but it worked!!

 

[ForeverBroke_]

I had thought of having a bit of a play around with bits to be honest. Either a straight-bar as you said or a sweet iron, but i've got noo idea how well they supposedly work with regards encouraging the horse to soften etc.

And to Q1) I Know haha, thats what i thought

 

[jesterfaerie]

1 - Sometimes, only because it is a Hi-Viz one, it is a VERY thin one which I can use in the middle of summer without a problem.
2 - Do you lunge him at all? Lunging him in a pessoa or another similar aid will help him to work in a consistant outline which may help you both when you ask for the outline when you ride him.

 

[ForeverBroke_]

It sounds ridiculous, but im sort of lunge-phobic atm. The nearest school to us which is litereally a 2 minute walk down a track is very uneven and when I last lunged Darcy in there at a nice, calm trot he fell flat on his face and flipped over etc. He didn't get hurt - just ripped some skin off of his nose but it's put me off for ages! So, I do lunge him occasionally when I can walk up to the furthur one x

 

[Grey_Eventer]

dont worry about giraffee ness! it just takes time, definitley try some other bits to see if that may be the probllem... my horse can be like this, like today he was in a fowl mood took me and my instructor 40 mins of various techniques to get him to come round and soft.
does your horse tend to try and run off? mine does this and if i slow him down he just goes short and manky hopping up and down so i just make him really trot, not a sort of dressage normal trot, but really open him up and do circles etc. also do this in canter it really helps me as he then wants to work as he realises galloping off is not the way forward!
i would get an instructor aswell as when my instructors there things come together when shes not there and hes being an @rse it all falls apart!

 

[ForeverBroke_]

Lol, i have weekly lessons in which he's slowly improoving too, its also on my own when i'm trying to work on it that it all goes down the drain

 

[dwi]

Daisy is clipped at the moment so if I was schooling at home and it was raining then yes she would wear an exercise sheet because she can't go out naked in the rain with no coat and i'm not going to rug her wet.